Upcoming Retreats

Choden, a South African born Buddhist monk, will offer a weekend workshop exploring compassion within the context of mindfulness practice. He currently resides in Edinburgh in Scotland and teaches on the University of Aberdeen Postgraduate Studies in Mindfulness MSc. During the workshop he will offer skills and practices for tapping into the compassionate potential within us. In so doing, we will discover source of inner vitality and well-being that can support us when we are down and help us respond to the inevitable difficulties of life. Choden will draw on the wealth of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, as well as insights from evolutionary psychology and neuroscience. In 2013, he co-authored a book with renowned British psychologist Paul Gilbert called Mindful Compassion (2013) which was a synthesis of psychology, science and Buddhism.

He will focus on the cultivation of self-compassion as an antidote to self-criticism and the cultivation of compassion for others by drawing on the Buddhist model of the 4 Limitless Contemplations (loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity). This will include the practice of tonglen or taking and sending. The workshop will be experiential and will include a combination of imagination and mindfulness-based practices.

This is an invitation to slow down and retreat with the support of two optional daily practices, a sound journey, time for solitude, silence and individual connection to support you through the weekend. Despina will be offering two yoga classes per day which include meditation, breathwork and therapeutic sound (morning and evening) with plenty of time to retreat at your own pace. We will be exploring Yin, gentle hatha and restorative yoga, breathwork, therapeutic sound and mindfulness practices. Intentional sounds like in a sound journey intend to invite us into a deeper state of listening and meditation that transcends the thinking mind

Ajahn Jutindharo comes highly recommended by his colleague and friend, Ajhan Sucitto.

Ajahn Jutindharo’s approach is grounded in awareness of our own body, with practices based around body awareness and the breath. He emphasises an open attitude of kindness and curiosity, so that we learn to trust more in that which is already alive, awake and free within us. When we remember how to connect with these wholesome sources, we access a wider range of tools for deepening our understanding, addressing some of the things that we find more challenging, and furthering our exploration.

Join Steve for an enjoyable weekend of identifying some of the BRC’s 160 species of birds - including the summer residents, the rare Blue Swallow, Knysna Turaco and Emerald Cuckoo. Wake up to birdsong and walk the verdant hills and meadows close to where the Blue Swallows nest. The BRC has been awarded “Private Nature Reserve” status by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife for its conservation of the Blue Swallow and its pristine mistbelt grasslands. Included will be talks, slide shows, meditation and some quiet time communing with nature. Bring your binoculars and a sunhat.

Explore this ancient Chinese practice that boosts one’s health and vitality. Participants will learn the key techniques of how to master qigong and incorporate it into their daily lives, effortlessly. These techniques are easy to learn, are useful and powerful. The healing power of qigong works on both the physical and spiritual level - if it is done correctly. These techniques include breathing, timing, warm ups, postures, movement and mind projection. Dr Hu will also introduce some Chinese medicine for detoxing, lowering cholesterol, decreasing body fat and relieving water retention. This retreat is designed to suit beginners, as well as those who have practised qigong previously.